Sion Sono's Love Exposure (Ai no mukidashi) (2008) is getting its first American run starting this Friday, May 13th, until Thursday May 19th at The Cinefamily. Each day (except Monday) will have a screening at 7:30 PM and a special early screening at 2:30 PM on Saturday.I remember it played at The Cinefamily in November of 2009, but I always get reluctant of seeing a film that's more that three hours. Running at 237 minutes (!), the film seems to be over the map and takes a stab at family, religion, Japanese cinema and sex. Surprisingly, all accounts mention that the film manages to keep it all under control and ends up being a lot more entertaining than its art house origins may lead on. The Cinefamily is making a very big deal about the run and so I put my faith in them and hope their grand statements about the film isn't just pure hyperbole!
I'll definitely be going this week and plan on ordering two tickets for a screening. From Sion Sono, I've only seen Suicide Club (Jisatsu Sākuru) (2002) which left me lukewarm, but I'm very much interested Love Exposure which seems to be an awful lot of fun (plus anything with a Meiko Kaji reference will grab my attention!).
For those who don't live in Los Angeles, the always excellent Third Window Films released a region 2 DVD of Love Exposure early last year. Amazon UK is selling it brand new new for only £5.99 (about $11).
